hello. welcome to "newsline." japanese exporters have hit a record but not one they were hoping for. exports plungeded in 2020 leadi to a record high trade deficit.

imports rose as japan brought in more and more energy resources to fill a gap at home. finance ministry officials issued a preliminary report. they say the trade deficit came to about 6.29 trillion yen, more than $78 trillion. exports fell 2.7% in yen terms. the strong yen hurt exporters. they saw demand from europe drop off. exports from china dropped too. consumers there steered clear of japanese goods. imports rose 3.8% to $798 billion. the rise mainly due to higher demand for liquefied natural gas. investors are trading on the latest data. what is you been seeing this

morning? >> right after that announcement investors sold the yen but the yen against the dollar has recovered to the mid 88 yen level now. the dollar yen currently trading at 88.55. analysts say that's been yen selling pressure is not as strong as it's been before the bank of japan policy earlier in the week. let's see how this is affecting stockers. investors are trying to cake ta cues from the yen move. some investors are taking profits while others are buying as the nikkei has fallen be kospi is trading lower by .4

a percent. apple's net profit from october to december rose only 0.1% from the same quarter earlier. this highlights the slowdown in the company's earnings. the quarterly figure stood at $13.1 billion. the sales of smart phones and tablet computers marked a record high on a quarterly basis. analysts say that rising production costs for new models pushed down profits. they say the poor results are due to strong demand for old models whose prices were cut following the release of new ones. officials at the international monetary fund say global growth will strengthen gradually in 2013. that's as economic activity start to ease this year. the imf release an update of its

world economic outlook report on wednesday. if forecast global economic growth will reach 3.5% this year. that's up from 3.2% in 2012. the imf says the euro zone economy will recover more slowly than previously expected. the imf's growth forecast for the united states is 2%. that's as long as the country contains its fiscal crisis including the debt ceiling and fiscal growth. the imf has mained growth outlook for the japanese economy for 1.2% this year.

they were warned about the risks of accumulating debt without consolidation measures. >> when the countries start with ray otio of debt to gdp, in bot cases it's much above. we vowed a clear plan for fiscal consolidation over the next five, ten years, it seems to many to be quite dangerous to increase the fiscal deficit. >> the u.s. house of representatives have agreed to raise the debt ceiling until may 18th. the bill will prevent the government from defaulting on its debt. the bill passed the house on

wednesday after the republican majority changed its stance. republicans said they would not approve the bill unless the government made more cuts to social programs. republicans had public criticism that they were not consider the markets on a financial default. john boehner said to show the american people that it would move to balance the budget. >> they understand you can't continue to spend money that you don't have. we're committed to doing a budget on the house side. a budget that will balance over the next ten years. it's time for the senate and the president to show the american people how they're willing to balance a budget over the next ten years. >> the bill now goes to the senate where it's expected to pass and be approved by the white house. republicans will continue to push the government to review social security spending. the bill urges congress to

compile an outline of the 2014 budget by mid-april. more business headlines next hour. here is another check on markets. u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton has suggested islamist militants may be behind separate attacks in north africa. she talked about the hostage taking last week of workers at a gas plant in algeria. clinton said algerian government officials have told their

counterparts in washington that some of the islamist militants may have been involved in another high-profile operation. she said they may have taken part in the killing last september of the u.s. ambassador and three other americans in benghazi, libya. >> benghazi did not happen in a vacuum. the arab revolutions have scrambled power dynamics and shattered security forces across the region. >> clinton said there is no doubt the terrorists in algeria had weapons taken from libya. she suggested the arab spring revolutions have helped islamist groups to expand their reach. government officials have confirmed that two more japanese were killed in the attack in algeria. nine japanese are now known to have died in the siege. government officials are still trying to learn what happened to another person. >> translator: i'm sorry to say, but japanese officials and

employees from jgc corporation confirmed on wednesday that two of the dead were japanese nationals who worked for the company. the government has expressed its sincere condolences to their families. >> the militants took hundreds of workers hostage. suga called it a cowardly act of terrorism. he promised to do what he can to find the remaining japanese worker who has not been accounted for. japan's senior vice foreign minister asked algeria prime minister for help. shunichi suzuki met with abdelmalek sellal in algiers. he delivered a letter from prime minister shinzo abe. suzuki asked for details about the deaths of the two latest victims, and he requested help in bringing their bodies home.

investigators are looking into the timing of the attack. executives from energy companies had a meeting scheduled on the day the militants moved in. algerian security forces surrounded the plant soon afterward. then they fought their way in. at least 37 foreign nationals died in the operation. a senior manager with jgc corporation was among the japanese hostages. he was scheduled to meet with managers from the british oil firm bp. bp leads the gas development project. some officials have questioned whether someone leaked information about the meeting to the militants. friends and relatives of the victims are expressing their sadness and their anger. more from nhk world's keiko abe. >> reporter: rokura fuchida ran building sites around the world. he was 64 years old and retired.

then his former bosses asked him to lead one more project in algeria. he wrote about it on facebook before he left. >> translator: i'm working all over the world to see the twinkling, starlit sky. next i will see the stars from the desert in algeria. >> reporter: his brother, mitsunobu, heard about the hostage taking, then waited day after day for a call from rokuro. it never came. >> translator: rokuro was kind and a good brother. i just want to hug him. that's the only thing i want to do. >> reporter: fumihiro ito worked in algeria. he had spent years developing energy resources. he led a project to develop gas

fields in sahara desert. ito came from minamisanriku a town devastated in the tsunami two years ago. now his 82-year-old mother lives alone in temporary housing. she says she has no mementos to remember her son. he and his former classmates were planning to get together next month to celebrate their 60th birthdays. >> translator: ito said he would join the party but would not stay overnight because he wanted to visit his mother and stay with her. i want the news to be a mistake. i still think ito will show up at the party. >> reporter: he was looking forward to seeing his old friend. instead, he and the others will take a moment to remember. keiko abe, nhk world, tokyo.

japan's aviation authorities are preparing to strip down a defective boeing 727 battery that forced pilots to make an emergency landing last week. it landed in western japan after smoke was detected inside the cabin. they suspect the lithium battery overheated and affected the plane's electrical system. the dreamliners' flight recorder has already revealed that the battery's voltage began to plunge around the same time smoke was detected, but investigators say they found no they've asked the manufacturer to dismantle the battery. the investigators want to take a closer look. afghan security forces will soon take the lead in combat operations in their own country. while nato led forces move to a

support role. military commanders are sending some soldiers back to school for a lesson in culture tolerance. nhk world's hideki yui reports. >> reporter: a somber mood takes over at the headquarters of international forces in kabul every sunday during a weekly ceremony to remember troops killed in afghanistan. >> we should know that the heroes we honor today will not have died in vain. amen. >> reporter: some 400 foreign soldiers died last year in afghanistan. at least 61 were victims of insider attacks. that's about 30 times the number five years ago. rising anti-u.s. sentiment in afghanistan is partly to blame. angry afghans took to the

streets last february after the burning of copies of the koran by u.s. military personnel. amid deep religious and cultural differences many afghan soldiers feel humiliated by foreigners' behavior. >> translator: if an american soldier crosses his legs, it makes me angry and i tell him to stop. >> reporter: insurgents are taking advantage of such emotions. this taliban pr video praises a former afghan soldier who killed a u.s. service member and calls him a hero.

>> reporter: the taliban rewarded another soldier who mounted an inside attack with a payment of about $500. the afghan government and the international commanders are drawing up measures to halt insider attacks. afghan soldiers learn about foreign cultures and lifestyles to try to reduce negative feelings. a textbook gives examples of

behavior that might offend afghans such as showing photos of female family members, blowing one's nose, or crossing legs in public. the handbook explains such actions are common overseas. >> translator: we would never show photos of our wife or daughter to a stranger. but that's not uncommon for foreigners. >> reporter: afghan soldiers who attend the classes said they had a better understanding of western culture. even so, some still cannot tolerate behavior they consider unislamic. >> translator: we learned a lot. foreign men can go to the bathroom standing up, but muslims sit down. we couldn't accept that. >> translator: it's foreigners who should learn about afghan customs and islamic culture and get a better understanding of what's acceptable here. >> reporter: international forces are struggling to turn the tide of anti-u.s. sentiment. some afghans are concerned that

unless they can reduce inside attacks foreign forces may accelerate their withdrawal. and that in turn could open the door to a taliban comeback and a return to civil war. hideki yui, nhk world, kabul. thousands of people waiting to go home. tons of debris waiting for disposal, vast tracks of land waiting to be restored. overcoming the challenges of japan's 2011 disaster won't be easy but people are moving forward.

people visit public bath houses in japan to soak in hot water and relax. some also soak in their surroundings. walls usually feature large murals depicting beautiful scenes to help bathers unwind. morio nakajima is one of only two artists in japan still painting these murals. the 67-year-old has started using his skills to let people know about the beauty of his home town. nhk world's ichigo kataoka has the story. >> reporter: an entire wall three meters high and ten meters long. for more than 49 years morio nakajima has specialized in bath house murals. his paintings have decorated about 5,000 bath houses around the country, and almost all of them have included mount fuji, the iconic symbol of japan. but recently nakajima has turned

to painting scenes of his home town, itate village in fukushima prefecture. >> translator: i feel very different when i'm painting my home town rather than mount fuji. it reminds me of the countryside. and when i was living there. >> reporter: itate lies just 40 kilometers from the fukushima daiichi power plant. radiation released after the nuclear accident in 2011 forced everyone in the town to leave their homes. in the fall of that year nakajima visited children who had relocated to nearby towns. >> translator: after the quake the children seemed rather depressed. to make them happier and more energetic, i thought it would be

good if they painted some pictures with colorful scenes. >> reporter: nakajima asked the children to paint pictures of the itate village the way they remembered it. the children used bright colors to depict their home town. >> translator: the children really taught me something. they're acting so bravely it makes you want to cry. >> reporter: people gathered on march 11th last year at a park in tokyo to mark the first anniversary of the earthquake and tsunami. they wanted to encourage residents in the disaster area. nakajima and a friend painted itate village and mount fuji. after that people wrote messages of support for those displaced by the disaster.

to bring the messages of support to the people most affected, nakajima decided to make up posters of the paintings from the event. 3,000 of the posters were printed. nakajima wants to send people to the people who were forced to leave itate and relocate to other towns. >> translator: because of the radiation people are suffering. i hope that when they see these posters they will be reminded of their home town and it will keep them in good spirits as they look forward to returning home soon. that's the most important thing. >> reporter: inspired by the

countryside of his home town, nakajima says he will continue painting scenes of itate village so that its beauty is never forgotten. ichigo kataoka, nhk world, tokyo. many people in the united states are shivering through a cold snap. >> let me show you what it's like out in the u.s. the coldest weather is bringing heavy snows. slippery roads are causing traffic jams and accidents. temperatures dipped to minus 20 degrees in some places. cold enough to freeze this t-shirt in just a few minutes. temperatures will slowly return to normal levels by monday. taking a look at this satellite

image you can see the jet stream is plunging all the way down towards the south eastern areas making things still very cold. the dakotas will see the wind chill advisories in those areas. some areas are marking about minus 40 with that wind chill factor. really don't want you to be outside. if you must, please do bundle up. the lake effect snow will still be adding additional snowfall of about 15 centimeters. 13 centimeters will be piling up in is sierras and the northern rockies. that's going to be creeping inland. take a look at that in minneapolis it's minus 13 degrees hence that freezing in an instant new york.

new york, minus 6 degrees for your high. you saw the temperature to about midsummer like temperatures yesterday. moving over to the asian continent now taking about the haze and fog that covered much of the areas in china. finally we'll see some winds to disburse all those bad air qualities. we have a low pressure system that will be developing over the sea of japan moving into our country. we'll have a short break as this low pressure system moves away making things fine and clear and sunny in tokyo. thunderstorms and hail will be in store for us.

minus 6 in seoul on your friday. when that cold air pulls cold air toward japan minus 3. here across the european continent we have snowy weather. high waves will still be on tap for you across the western coast and towards the south the unstable weather will be persisting. thunderstorms, hail and gust will be active. here is your extended forecast.

that's all for this edition of "newsline." thanks for joining us.